XIA06.4
"Buffy! Buffy! Wake up!" Buffy jumped and looked up at Sam, who was gently shoving her. "You were having a dream," she said, quietly. Buffy smiled. "Well duh! Don't you usually when you sleep?" Sam attempted a grin. You were tossing and turning - looked like you weren't enjoying it" Buffy nodded. "I don't suppose I was." she trailed off. Most of the details of the dream were fuzzy now - she hated it when that happened. Except when it didn't. "You know, at least that dream was different" Buffy said quietly, her bubbly nature subsiding. "It didn't have -" She stopped. "Didn't have what?" Buffy looked up, her eyes no longer happy. "I think I can trust you - but if I tell you, you can't tell the others." Sam nodded. "Cross my heart" "I had this lover - Angel. He was different to other boyfriends. He was... was..." "What?" "A vampire. But he had a soul, cursed by some Gypsy tribe. Anyway, we were in love until -" Buffy's eyes began to water. Sam put on her comforting expression. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to." "The curse was broken when we - we - it broke. And he became bad again. And then he tried to destroy the world by releasing Alfalfa - I mean Acathla - and -" A phone ringing interrupted them. Buffy sat up in alarm and swung over to the phone. Before answering it, she wiped her eyes quickly. "Yes?" "Buffy? I hope I didn't wake you." It was Willow. Buffy grinned, or tried to. "Nah, Sam and I have just been just sitting up all night chatting away. She's a real chatterbox. Ow!" Buffy tried to listen to the phone as she pulled away the pillow Sam threw at her. "I'm at the library and I'm worried about the Doctor. Has he called you at all?" Buffy looked at her little Pokemon watch. "Will, it's 2am. Why are you at the library?" "I couldn't sleep, and anyway, tomorrow's the full moon, so I thought I'd get the cage ready. Are you sure that he hasn't called?" Willow's voice was wavery and frightened. She was genuinely worried. "I'm supposed to be asleep, so he wouldn't wake me up. It's the middle of the night, Willow!" "Even more reason for him to call!" Willow's voice went up a pitch. "I mean, there may be vampires - it is night remember. And, and, werewolves. No, not werewolves cause that's tomorrow night and this is tonight night." "Ok, Willow, calm down. I'm coming over, is Giles there?" "Yeah, he's busy doing research. He's trying to find out if these Delphighnin things are in the books. I tried to help, but the words went all blurry." "Tell him Sam and I are coming to help then." She brought the phone down onto her shoulder. "If that's ok with you?" Sam shrugged, baffled at the one-sided phone conversation she was hearing. "We're on our way" "Good" Buffy could imagine Willow nodding. "Cause this TARDIS of his is doing some weird beeping noises - that's the other reason why Giles is here" "Beeping noises?" Sam asked Willow in the library later. "Darn tootin'!" "What kind?" she asked, running her hands along the blue paintwork. "Well, it was kinda like a..." She did a few bip noises. "And then worp, worp, worp" "Are you sure?" "Kinda." Sam sighed and tried the door. Locked. "You know, this is the reason I've been bugging the Doctor about a spare key." "Well, what were you going to do if you could get in?" Sam shrugged. "I don't know - make sure that it's not the dimensional circuits?" "I found it! I found it!" All three girls turned to watch Giles coming out of the small room that backed onto the counter. In his hand was a book and in the other his glasses, which he hurriedly put on. "The Delphighnin are a race of extra-terrestrial entities who frequent this planet for many objectives but habitually to acquire representatives of other entities of a demonic nature" Buffy raised her hand. "I think I speak for everyone here when I say 'huh?'" Giles looked up from the book. "Um, well, it means that they're aliens that come to Earth for the sole purpose of stealing demons for food." Buffy grinned. "Oh, then why not let them stay and I can retire?" "They're not as ethical as you are, Buffy. They take Vampires for food, and they won't stop when the vampires are all dead. They'll keep a few to continue the spread of Vampires, turning more humans, and won't leave until the planet has been completely stripped of human life. "Like a parasite?" Sam asked. "Precisely" "These Delphingys, do they manipulate dreams?" Giles glanced down at the book, then back to Buffy. "No, why do you ask?" "Oh, no reason" "You haven't been having unusual dreams have you? If you have, and they're prophecy..." "No, no, it's nothing like that. Just a query, that's all. So, how do we kill one of these All-night-Delis?" "Delphighnin," Giles corrected. "And I don't know. As I said, they're aliens, and the Watcher's Council booklists don't really focus on the terrors from beyond the stars, but more so from beyond the Hellmouth." "Well, what other info can you get?" Giles shrugged and put the book on the table. "That's all I'm afraid." Buffy stomped. "This is stupid!" Willow put her hand of Buffy's shoulder. "Calm down, Buff, we'll get rid of them" They all heard a weird bipping sound, closely followed by a worp, worp, worp. "That was it!" Willow was exited. "That was the sound!" All four of them turned toward the Police Box, sitting alone in the corner. "Um I'm not sure that killing us would be a good idea." "Kill them!" Leri repeated. "Doctor, do something!" Fitz called. One Delphighnin was moving toward him, while another seemed to be going toward the Doctor arms - or tentacles - outstretched. "Oh dear, hang on a minute!" The Doctor shoved his hands deep into his pockets, and pulled out the first thing that came to hand - an apple. "Oops." He threw it at the approaching Delphighnin and watched it bounce off its head. The Doctor gulped. "Destroy them!" Mro declared. "Would you be quiet please?" the Doctor called. "I'm trying to think!" Fitz rolled his eyes. "Doctor, hurry!" The Doctor delved into his pockets again and clutched something metallic. "Ah, luck!" he muttered as he extracted the Sonic Screwdriver. He held it out at the Delphighnin and poised his thumb over the button. "Stop!" he bellowed. "Come any closer and I send sonic disruptions that will vibrate you to dust do I make myself clear?" The Delphighnin before him stopped, as did the one heading toward Fitz. "You are bluffing!" Mro called. "Am I? Fitz, come here. I might be bluffing, but are you game to test it?" Fitz scurried across the floor and stood next to the Doctor. "Now, you will give us thirty seconds to leave, and anyone that I find following us will be Sonic Screwed, if you get my meaning." Fitz rolled his eyes at the dumb pun, as the Doctor lead him backward toward the door, keeping the Sonic Screwdriver in their sites. As soon as the door closed between then, they turned around. "Doctor," Fitz asked, "were you really bluffing?" The Doctor nodded. "This couldn't do much to them. Probably tickle them, like it would you." Fitz agreed, then glanced behind him. "So, how long until they realize this?" "Oh, any second now. After you?" Fitz didn't need an extra invitation. "Alright, stand back, Sam, I'm going to shoulder-charge it" Sam shook her head. "Nothing can get into the TARDIS unless you've got the key." Buffy pouted. "Well, can I try anyway?" Before Sam could answer, she heard another beeping noise from her pocket. She pulled a little black object out and looked at the number, knowing who it was going to be anyway. "It's the Doctor. He's given me the number of a payphone." Willow giggled. "He lives in a telephone box and he has a pager?" Sam wandered over to the library phone and shrugged as she dialled. "One of his old companions insisted he use it and he kept it. Not a bad idea providing that there're telephones on the planet you're using. Doctor? Is that you?" She paused, as presumably the Doctor talked a bit. "Oh, Fitz, hi." Buffy shrugged. So it was Fitz, which meant he was ok. "So he rescued you in the end?" Her voice was acting indifferent, but the smile and the thumbs up Sam gave were an obvious sign that she was overjoyed. "Really? Two out of three stooges then? All right, two very buggy stooges then. What? We're at the library. No, just Buffy, Willow, Giles and I. I don't know, Willow was here with Giles and she rang Buffy. Yep, ok. Sure. Huh? What did you say? Fitz? Fitz!" She dropped the phone. "He got cut off!" Willow tried to put on a brave face. "Well, maybe they ran out of money?" Sam shook her head. "He told me they'll be on their way here. But that sounded like the phone being yanked out." "Maybe he gets angry when he runs out of money?" Willow always looked on the bright side. Buffy sighed. "Well, looks like I'll have to rescue them again. Let Giles know I've gone." "But you don't know where they are!" Sam called. "Sunnydale's a small town, and most of it's covered with cemetery. There's only one payphone!" Buffy walked over to the book cage and pulled out a crossbow. She loaded it and marched toward to door. Before she could get there, the door swung inward and a horrible being stepped inside. He was short, bald, had a face like a rat and an evil glint in his eyes. "Principal Snyder!" Buffy said, not with fear, but more with disgust. "Well, well, well. Miss Summers." The little man walked into the room casually. "I don't believe you were given permission to return to school property." "I thought Mr. Giles cleared that up." "Well, you thought wrong, didn't you Miss -" He cut off as he saw Sam across the room. "Who might you be?" Sam glanced at Willow, then back at the weasel in human form. "Umm, I'm Sam. Giles' niece. From England. How are you?" He sniffed, then turned back to the Slayer. It was now that he noticed her crossbow. "What is this?" "What's what?" "The crossbow you have in your hand." Buffy looked down and acted as if she hadn't seen it before. "Hmm? Oh, this, well, umm. It's a prop. For a school production of, um, um," she faltered. "Dracula!" Willow piped up. She suddenly subdued when three sets of eyes spun around to look at her quizzically. "Well, vampires can be killed with crossbows, can't they?" Snyder turned back to Buffy. "Give it to me. It's an illegal weapon." Buffy glared at the little man. "Believe me, if you don't get out of my way soon, you will get it." "Ach! Doctor!" Fitz called, as he felt something grab him by the scruff of the neck. Bending backward under the pressure, he looked up into the face of the Delphighnin that grabbed him. No, that wasn't the bug features of a Delphighnin, it was a humanoid. Well, except from the fact his face was all puckered and his teeth were sharpened. "Oh great, vampires!" he muttered. The demon grimaced and brought his mouth down toward Fitz's neck. Fitz jumped as he felt the vampire let go suddenly and fly off elsewhere. He collapsed, his body not used to that position without any support and happily looked up at the stars. His curiosity got the better of him, however, and he sat up to see what had gotten rid of the vampire. It was the Doctor - why didn't he guess that? - and he seemed to be having fun. There were two vamps - or three? He couldn't see; it was just a bit too dark. Buffy must have had to eat plenty of carrots to be able to fight them in this light. So must the Doctor. One vampire grabbed him in a bear hug while the other tried to come toward him. The Doctor leant back into the other vamp and kicked out at the one in front of him. As soon as his feet hit the ground again, he spun, elbowed the vamp in the head, grabbed his neck and sent his midsection down into his knee. As the vamp dropped to the ground, the Doctor stepped away and put a hand into his pocket. As the vampires rose to their feet, the Doctor grinned. "Well, having fun? I certainly am. My, you do look tired! Getting weak?" The vampire on his left growled. "I'll kill you for that!" "For that? Then what were you killing me about before?" The vampire leaped as the Doctor ducked sending the vampire soaring over the top of him. The vampire fell into a roll and came to his feet. The Doctor rose to face him. He pulled his hand out of his pocket and held the Sonic Screwdriver. Oh no, thought Fitz. He's going to try it again. The Doctor looked at the screwdriver with a smile, then, holding the knobbed end in his fist, plunged it into the chest of the vampire coming up behind him. The vampire immediately turned to dust. Without pausing to look in shock, he spun the screwdriver about so he was pointing it at the remaining vampire in much the same way he did to the Delphighnin. However, this time he pressed the button. As a small buzzing sound came from the little tool, the vampire dropped to his knees, his hands to his head and screaming with pain. Then he joined his comrade in turning to dust. Fitz stood up and walked over to the Doctor, who turned off the Sonic Screwdriver and returned it to his pocket. "I thought you said it was a bluff." "It was," the Doctor replied, still looking at the Vampire's last position. "It wouldn't have done anything to a Delphighnin but vampires are a different story." Fitz looked and heard a noise in the bushes. The Doctor touched Fitz on the shoulder lightly and pointed down the road. "How fast do you think you could get down there?" "Why?" "The school's that way." Fitz grinned. "I could beat you." "Good, when I say run -" Fitz groaned and took off. The Doctor glared at him angrily. "I hadn't said it yet!" "So, we are back where we started, Leri?" Mro said. "Do not blame me, Mro, I did not see Xyzyxukyyzkyx assisting!" Xyzyxukyyzkyx raised eirs nippers in surrender. "I was trying to avoid the human that wasn't Rupertgiles from stealing the documents." "And were you successful?" Xyzyxukyyzkyx nodded. "Of course!" Ey opened the drawer of the desk and pulled out the paper. Ey displayed it with a smug look on eir face. "You see?" Leri picked up the paper and examined it carefully. "This is interesting. Five packets of smokes, four bottles of milk, three packets of teabags, two loaves of bread -" Ey looked up at the others, baffled. "And a partridge in a pear tree." "It is a fake!" Mro roared. Ey sent eir clipper toward Xyzyxukyyzkyx's proboscis device and applied pressure. Xyzyxukyyzkyx collapsed to eir knees, the pain beginning to be unbearable. "You have failed us, Xyzyxukyyzkyx" ey whispered menacingly. "What is there to stop me from killing you now?" "I - I - I have an idea!" Xyzyxukyyzkyx stuttered, unable to breathe. "We can get them back!" Mro released em, and awaited em to get back to eir feet. "Talk" "There is a dimensional anomaly here -" Xyzyxukyyzkyx began. "We know that" Leri interrupted. "That is why we came here" Xyzyxukyyzkyx held up a clipper, indicating he wanted to finish. "We can summon the one who isn't Rupertgiles to us. There is a formula we can recite that can tap the power of this anomaly." Mro smiled. "Tell me more, Xyzyxukyyzkyx. You have just saved your life." Xyzyxukyyzkyx bowed, and stood again. "Apart from getting the document back, we would be able to have many more demons on which we could feed." "There's no use threatening me, young lady," Snyder said coldly. "I told you, give me the weapon." Buffy tried a grin on him, but decided it wasn't worth her effort. "You know, it could be very easy to kill you right now. You kicked me out of school, forced me to run away from home. Hell, I could even blame you for all these Daleks we're facing." "Delphighnin" Willow corrected. "Whatever" Buffy said, as she raised the weapon at Snyder's head. He paled and immediately stepped back. "So what's it gonna be?" "You don't scare me, Miss Summers" Snyder said, although it was obvious she did. "Oh come on! You'd wet your pants except you know it would lower your low reputation. Now, I'm asking you for the last time. Move out of my way!" "Excuse me, is there a problem Mr. Snyder?" Giles stepped out of the anteroom, holding a book in his hand. He glared at the little man. "Um, ah -" Snyder gulped, quite at a loss for words. "Miss Summers -" "Buffy, don't kill him please," Giles said, quietly. "But Giles -" "It's not worth it." Snyder sneered. "You know how much trouble you'd be in if you killed me!" Giles took off his glasses and looked innocently up at the principal. "Oh no. We're running low on arrows and we have to conserve our stocks." Buffy reluctantly lowered the crossbow, and Snyder visibly relaxed. Buffy was not amused. "Get out, now, before I decide to ignore him." Snyder nodded. "But I'll be watching you Miss Summers. All the time." Buffy rolled her eyes and Snyder, very calmly and smugly, opened the library door. The next thing they knew, Snyder was on the ground in a heap of green velvet and brown curls. "Doctor!" Sam called, leaping over the counter and over to help them up. "Fitz! What happened?" "Vampires" The Doctor said with a smile. Then he looked down at the unconscious wreck beneath him. "Who's this?" "Oh nothing, just a weasel" Buffy muttered. "Can I kill him?" "I think the school might frown upon that," Giles said quietly, heading back to the anteroom. "Well, I found the Delphighnin hideout, although I don't expect them to be there for a while." The Doctor strolled across the library and made himself comfortable at the book-covered table. "Now, Fitz - did you find out anything while you were there?" He nodded. "Sure. Vamps can be dusted with Sonic Screwdrivers" "No, apart from that?" "Sonic Screwdriver?" Willow asked. Sam turned to Willow. "I'll explain later." Then she glanced at the Doctor, before casting her eyes at the sky. "Now I'm doing it!" "Well, they wanted me to translate this" Fitz reported, whilst fishing a piece of paper out of his pocket. "Let me see that," Giles said, taking the paper away. "It's in Spanish." "I know that. They wanted me to translate it for them. I had to tell them I couldn't - they thought I was you." Giles pulled off his glasses and looked quizzically at Fitz. "They were looking for me? Well, I must say I'm flattered, and not surprised as I can speak Spanish fluently." "Well, don't keep us in suspense, Giles. What does it say?" Buffy seemed to be becoming interested. "Hmm? Oh. Well, um" He examined the document, reading it carefully. "Hmm, interesting. Very interesting." "But what does it say?" Sam exclaimed. "Oh, it says -" The door suddenly burst inwards. Everyone jumped back toward the table as three Delphighnin stepped into the room. The Doctor leapt to his feet and began to shout at the three of them. "Now look what you've done to that door! You've wrecked it!" "Silence!" "And it wasn't even locked!" The Delphighnin on the left turned and looked at the unconscious principal lying beside him. "Who is this?" "A weasel" Buffy said. "You can kill him if you like" "You!" The head Delphighnin in the middle pointed at Willow. "Get it up." Willow turned pale, contrasting with her red hair. "You mean I have to touch him?" "Just do it!" the Doctor whispered. "Ok, ok." Willow leapt up from her seat and began to rouse Snyder. The head Delphighnin turned back to the Doctor. "Where is the dimensional anomaly?" "The what?" Giles looked baffled. "It means the Hellmouth," the Doctor supplied. "I can't tell you." "Then we will find it ourselves." It waved a device in its nipper around the room and paused when it pointed under the table. "It is there." "Lucky guess" the Doctor muttered. "Mro," the Delphighnin on the right said. "We don't need to open the anomaly anymore. We have the humans and the document!" "But imagine all the food we can eat when we do open it" "Open it?" Giles muttered. "You don't mean?" The Doctor nodded, and glared at the Delphighnin. "Yes. They're going to open the Hellmouth!" Buffy squirmed under the ropes they'd been tied in. All in a circle in the book cage, so that even if someone did get the endless ropes untied, they'd still have trouble trying to get out of the cage. "Can you get the ropes untied?" Willow asked. "No use trying" the Doctor whispered. "They're made of deriliam - they're only there in your mind. They can't be untied without either turning off their machine or deep psychotherapy. I'm afraid we're stuck." Buffy groaned and relaxed a bit. "Just my luck Slayers can't do anything about mind weapons. Will, what are they doing?" "They've moved the table - Giles, some of those books are never going to be the same again." "Never mind that" Giles muttered. "What else?" "They're sitting in a circle chanting. They're sitting around the actual Hellmouth!" The Doctor groaned. "They're using their psychic powers to open it. Not a good thing to happen for the rest of this planet." "What will happen Doctor?" Fitz asked. "Well, it's a gateway to another universe" the Doctor replied. "One where what you'd call demons and monsters exist. According to Giles, it's where all the monsters and what have you retreated to when mortals took over the Earth. Of course, since then they've been trying to get out, hence all the demons you see about here." "So if it's opened completely -" Sam started. "Monsters galore and an all-you-can-eat for the Delphighnin," the Doctor supplied. "Um, Doctor. It looks like they're almost ready!" Willow exclaimed. There was a rushing wind, and a weird cracking sound. The TARDIS began to make a blipping sound, followed by a worp, worp, worp. "Oops, Doctor, I meant to tell you about that noise the TARDIS was making." The Doctor tried to glance at the Police Box. "It's reacting to the Hellmouth opening" "Then why was it doing it before, Doctor?" Buffy asked. "What? You mean it was doing that earlier?" Buffy nodded. "That's why Willow called me to the Library earlier." The Doctor looked over at the wall. "Oh dear." "Doctor, the Hellmouth's open!" Willow exclaimed. Buffy screamed. "I've had this!" She pushed at something in her head with all her might. The willed herself to realize there's nothing around her. There's nothing around her. There's - Angel! The ring seemed to vanish - for her at least. She stood up and delivered a sharp and strong front kick to the lock of the cage. It sprang open with a snap as she ran over to the Hellmouth. The Delphighnin seemed very much out of it - trying to keep the damn thing open, she supposed. "So, this is what it looks like," she muttered. She missed out last time it opened, due to the fact she was dead. She looked around at the still Delphighnin, doing nothing but sitting. "Oh, come on! It's no fun when I don't get attacked!" Buffy was attacked. A tentacle from inside the Hellmouth suddenly reached up and grabbed her by the foot, pulling her down. She slipped and grabbed the edge of the Hellmouth and held on. Edge of the Hellmouth? Gee, that was a phrase she never expected to think. "Buffy!" called the Doctor as he leapt up from the weird rope and switched off the power. He dived out the door and reached down into it. "Give me you hand!" Buffy tried to reach up, stretched and grabbed the Doctor's forearm. Slowly, he eased her out of the hole. "What's going on?" Snyder suddenly awoke, oblivious to what was happening. He looked up and saw the Doctor bending over the hole. "Oh no. Not more strangers on my campus!" He stood up and marched over. He tapped the Doctor on the shoulder, who spun up to look at him. The Doctor slipped and suddenly fell into the Hellmouth with Buffy. Arms flailing wildly, the Time Lord grabbed the nearest thing available - Snyder's foot. A few seconds later, Principal, Slayer and Time Lord were flying through a vortex of monsters and demons. }}